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Volume II: Calling on House of Representatives to Act and Keep Dangerous Drugs off the Streets

WASHINGTON – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) and Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein’s (D-California) bipartisan bill to keep dangerous drugs off the streets recently passed the Senate.

The Temporary Reauthorization and Study of the Emergency Scheduling of Fentanyl Analogues Act must now be passed by the House of Representatives. The current temporary scheduling order, which keeps fentanyl-related substances illegal, is set to expire on February 6, 2020.

  • Lorraine McNeil-Popper, Addiction Policy Forum’s New York Ambassador: “When we lost my beloved twin brother Larry, I vowed that not only would I continue to share the memory and accomplishments of this wonderful person, but that I would be an advocate on behalf of those in need. This important legislation will continue the important practice of stopping drug dealers from having the ability to skirt the law and ravage our communities. I hope the House of Representatives moves quickly on this legislation and sends it to the President’s desk without delay.”
  • Doug Griffin, Addiction Policy Forum’s New Hampshire Ambassador: “Pam and I lost our amazing daughter Courtney to a heroin overdose five years ago. Our elected officials should be doing everything in their power to keep these devastating drugs off of the streets, and out of the hands of our loved ones. Common sense legislation like this is an absolute necessity to ensure we can reduce the number of fatalities in the United States.”
  • Jessica Hulsey Nickel, Founder of the Addiction Policy Forum: “This overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation is essential to combat fentanyl and the devastation it causes in our communities nationwide. We applaud the Senate for taking this important step and urge swift consideration and passage in the House of Representatives.”
  • John Lausch Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois: “To fight this violence-ridden drug trade and stem the tide of opioid overdoses, law enforcement needs access to every available tool. A crisis of this magnitude demands nothing less. Unfortunately, we are in danger of losing a critically important legal tool unless Congress acts quickly to keep potent fentanyl analogues illegal under federal law.
  • All Six New England U.S. Attorneys: “The Senate recently passed bipartisan legislation approving a 15-month extension of the temporary order. While this is a step in the right direction and the House should follow suit and pass the Senate's bill, a longer term solution is needed. A permanent ban on all fentanyl analogues would send a strong message to the cartels and sophisticated drug operations that pedal illicit fentanyl that the United States is serious about addressing this crisis and their actions will not be tolerated.”
  • Justin Herdman, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio: “Without congressional action, the prospect of unregulated and unrestrained trafficking of fentanyl analogues into Ohio by Mexican cartels and Chinese chemical manufacturers is not a possibility, it is a certainty… We owe it to the many thousands of Ohioans who have fallen victim to illicit fentanyl and its analogues to keep this ban in place.”
  • Jeffrey A. Rosen, U.S. Deputy Attorney General:If the House fails to act by midnight on February 6, traffickers of deadly opioids will again have the upper hand. This cannot be allowed to happen. The House of Representatives needs to act to help save Americans from more overdoses and deaths.”
  • Patrick Yoes, National President of National Fraternal Order of Police: “…the consideration and passage of this bill is a matter of some urgency, as drug overdose deaths are surging across the country due in large part to synthetic opioids—primarily fentanyl and fentanyl analogues. On behalf of the more than 350,000 members of the Fraternal Order of Police, I urge the House to quickly consider S. 3201 and send it to the President before the of 6 February 2020 deadline."
  • Eight Law Enforcement Organizations:We urge Congress to pass this bipartisan legislation to help law enforcement do its part to save lives. We appreciate your efforts to provide resources to counter the drug epidemic impacting our communities. Quickly passing this legislation before February 6, 2020 will allow that important work to continue.”